Melbourne, Cricket Australia on Tuesday announced the 15-player squad for the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022 to be held in the West Indies between January 14 - February 5.
Western Australia's Cooper Connolly will play his second ICC Under-19 World Cup, having been part of Australia’s previous campaign in South Africa. Connolly will be joined by quick Jack Nisbet, all-rounder Nivethan Radhakrishnan, and fast bowler Jackson Sinfield.
The squad, which was finalised following trial matches at a training camp in Adelaide last week, also features 17-year-old Harkirat Bajwa. The Victorian will tour as an underage player and will be eligible for selection in the 2024 tournament.
Australia Under-19 team will be coached by New South Wales development guru Anthony Clark, and will play three pool matches before the 16-team competition splits into two groups of eight for a Super League and Plate finals series.
“It was a challenging selection process, but we are confident in our system and have closely monitored the development of our U19 players over the past two years,” said Graham Manou, Cricket Australia’s Head of National Development.
“From a talent ID perspective, we’ve had access to world-leading technology that has allowed broader and more in-depth conversations between the coaches and players. Inevitably, there were difficult selection decisions, but we will continue to support and monitor the development of all players in our pathway systems.”
The squad will assemble for a training camp in Melbourne on December 28 before leaving for the West Indies.
“Our squad includes players of all disciplines with experience in domestic cricket environments, and many have produced eye-catching performances across a variety of strong competitions this season," said Anthony Clark, Australian Men's Under 19 head coach.
“The Under-19 World Cup provides players with an exceptional development opportunity and we look forward to seeing them represent their country with distinction.”
Australia squad: Harkirat Bajwa, Aidan Cahill, Cooper Connolly, Joshua Garner, Isaac Higgins, Campbell Kellaway, Corey Miller, Jack Nisbet, Nivethan Radhakrishnan, William Salzmann, Lachlan Shaw, Jackson Sinfield, Tobias Snell, Tom Whitney, Teague Wyllie.
Cricket Australia also named the reserve players which include Liam Blackford, Liam Doddrell, Joel Davies, Sam Rahaley and Aubrey Stockdale. Australia have been grouped alongside Scotland, Sri Lanka, and the hosts West Indies.